On the rise in central Harlem

In July 2001 Bill Clinton set up his post-presidency offices on the 14th floor at 55 W. 125th St. in Harlem. At the time, chants of "We love Bill" drowned out the odd shouts of "go home" and "slave master" from demonstrators, including those worried about impending gentrification.

Clinton's arrival did not usher in the wave of pricey developments that many locals feared, but the neighborhood just north of Marcus Garvey Park has certainly seen its share of investment since then.

Two charter schools have opened nearby in the past decade, both with financial backing from Jonathan Gray, chief operating officer of private-equity giant Blackstone Group. Investors including Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley and Thor Equities' Joe Sitt have snapped up properties in the neighborhood.

This month a New York City partnership, the Jay Group, filed plans for a 17-story, 113,341-square-foot building to replace five properties at 54-62 W. 125th St. The mixed-use building would be the tallest property on that side of the block.

Overall, sale prices in central Harlem are up significantly from a few years ago, if slightly flatter than in 2016 and early 2017. The average price for multifamily dwellings, for instance, more than doubled from 2012 to the first half of this year, to $472 a square foot, brokerage Ariel Property Advisors found.

Sales volume peaked in 2016 at $1.05 billion from 119 transactions, and this year's pace is on track to match or exceed the $442 million generated through 92 deals last year. Certain properties, including multifamily buildings with elevators and undeveloped land, are proving especially lucrative for sellers, said Victor Sozio, executive vice president of Ariel. "For that type of deal," he said, "a buyer will still pay a very good price."

55 W. 125th St.

Manhattan-based Cogswell Realty, which is led by CEO Arthur Stern, and the asset and wealth management wing of Deutsche Bank own this 15-story, 281,071-square-foot office building. Deutsche Bank was able to acquire its stake via a $117 million recapitalization in June 2015. Cogswell and the City Investment Fund—a venture between Fisher Bros. and Morgan Stanley—acquired the building and two others on West 126th Street for $75 million in January 2006.

5 W. 125th St.

Aurora Capital Associates, a Manhattan- based real estate investment firm run by Bobby Cayre, and A&H Acquisitions, run by Alex Adjmi, acquired this property for $15.5 million in December 2012. The venture then developed a 6-story, 131,648-square-foot complex with 30 apartments and more than 100,000 square feet of commercial and retail space. It opened in November 2016. Tenants include WeWork, Target and TJ Maxx.

54-62 W. 125th St.

The Jay Group, a Long Island–based private investment firm controlled by Avrohom Yitzchok and Joel Kohn, purchased these five buildings for $26.5 million in June. The firm plans to demolish the 4-story structures and replace them with a 160-foot building with 141 units, likely to be rental apartments.

1 W. 125th St.

Circle Capital F, a family-owned Manhattan firm managed by David Feldman, acquired this 2-story commercial building, with 30,912 square feet, for $15 million in 2008.

35 W. 124th St.

Harlem Village Academies, which describes itself as "a progressive K-12 charter school network," purchased this building for $14.9 million in 2010 and turned it into a high school. The charter system also owns and operates an elementary school at 74 W. 124th St. Jonathan Gray of Blackstone Group donated $10 million to the system to facilitate its purchase of 74 W. 124th, according to Bloomberg. He also helped finance the purchase of 35 W. 124th.

17 W. 125th St.

Thor Equities, the privately held real estate investment and development firm led by Joe Sitt, bought this 5-story, 46,200-square-foot building for $29.62 million in 2015. It includes 48 apartments and 9,200 square feet of retail space.

310 Lenox Ave.

The National Basketball Players Association sold its 3-story, 28,746-square-foot headquarters in March 2016 for $21 million to a partnership between L&M Development Partners, a privately held Manhattan company run by CEO Ron Moelis, and Chapman Consultancy, a family-run investment firm. Andrew Chapman is a co-owner of the Red Rooster Harlem restaurant on the building's ground floor. The players' union left for space in the Durst Organization–owned 1133 Sixth Ave.

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